Investment Services Shareholder Jeremy Senderowicz joined hosts Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber on the Bloomberg “Trillions” podcast, where they spoke about recent cryptocurrency developments in the ETF industry. Mr. Senderowicz is a leading practitioner in the area of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with extensive experience representing ETF sponsors and ETF fund complexes. On this episode of the podcast, entitled “The Bitcoin ETF Race Is Over – and Also Just Beginning”, topics of discussion included the SEC approval of the first bitcoin futures ETF, why the SEC allowed futures-backed products, who benefits off these investments and what comes next for the ETF industry.

To listen to the podcast in full, click here.

Vedder Price is pleased to announce that Jordan A. Sigale joined the firm’s Chicago office as a Shareholder in the Intellectual Property Litigation group.

Mr. Sigale concentrates his practice in intellectual property, computer, and patent law with a focus on patent and trade secret litigation and alternative dispute resolution. His work also extends to client counseling on corporate and strategic planning issues involving copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. Mr. Sigale has had a string of successful patent, trademark, and trade secret case resolutions without the need for trial. Some cases have been favorably decided at or soon after preliminary injunction. He has successfully combined his deep litigation experience with his extensive knowledge of U.S. and foreign patent prosecution practice. As an active member of the patent bar, he has prepared and prosecuted patent applications in the United States in the chemical, electrical, electrochemical, and mechanical arts, including business methods; cable television equipment; computer circuits (including multiprocessor designs); computer peripherals such as laser printers and user input devices; cosmetic preparations; electronic toys, electrical testing apparatuses, fiber optics, and high-end audio circuitry; kitchen appliances, medical devices, networking devices and methods and personal care devices; semiconductor design and fabrication, paperboard and plastic containers, RF equipment, signal processing software, speech recognition software, and telephony-related inventions.

Mr. Sigale has served as lead litigation and trial counsel in district courts throughout the United States involving a variety of intellectual property issues, including computer intrusion, copyright infringement, false advertising, design and utility patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and trademark infringement. He has also served as lead litigation and trial counsel on many antitrust claims, usually focused on the antitrust-intellectual property interface. His litigation work has involved diverse technologies including cable television systems; chemical compositions (e.g., ceramics, ink, iodine processing, and pharmaceuticals); consumer electronics (e.g., DVD players, small kitchen electrics, personal care devices, and toys); lab equipment (e.g., spectrophotometers); oil field fluid development and management; LED devices; lighting fixtures and power supplies; medical devices (e.g., laser devices, orthopedic devices, and radiological devices); packaging; secured payment technology; software; and telephony (e.g., cellular, cordless, and wired).

“Mr. Sigale is a talented litigator and a strong addition to our team. His prosecution and strategic counselling skills will be an immediate asset to our IP and IP Litigation groups,” said Robert S. Rigg, Chair of Vedder Price’s Intellectual Property and Intellectual Property Litigation groups. “I am delighted that he is joining the team; his skill set will further strengthen our already diverse practice.”

“I am very excited to join the outstanding attorneys at Vedder Price, especially in their Intellectual Property group,” said Mr. Sigale. “It is the perfect platform to build my practice.”

Mr. Sigale earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law, magna cum laude, and earned his B.S. from the University of Illinois College of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Vedder Price is pleased to announce that our UK Global Transportation Finance Team and attorneys have been ranked by Chambers UK in 2022
Asset Finance: Aviation Finance UK-Wide

Practice Group Ranking: Band 2

Attorney Rankings

Derek Watson: Band 4

Dylan Potter: Band 4

Gavin Hill: Band 1

Neil Poland: Band 2

For the complete rankings in this category, please click here.

Chambers and Partners is a notable resource for the legal profession and has built a reputation for in-depth, objective research. Chambers conducts thousands of interviews with lawyers and their clients worldwide to identify and rank the world’s best lawyers according to the criteria most valued by clients—such as technical knowledge, business acumen, prompt delivery and value. On the basis of this research, Chambers ranks both firms and individual attorneys around the world.

Click here to view the firm’s Chambers UK profile.

Vedder Price is pleased to announce that Jordan A. Sigale joined the firm’s Chicago office as a Shareholder in the Intellectual Property Litigation group.

Mr. Sigale concentrates his practice in intellectual property, computer, and patent law with a focus on patent and trade secret litigation and alternative dispute resolution. His work also extends to client counseling on corporate and strategic planning issues involving copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. Mr. Sigale has had a string of successful patent, trademark, and trade secret case resolutions without the need for trial. Some cases have been favorably decided at or soon after preliminary injunction. He has successfully combined his deep litigation experience with his extensive knowledge of U.S. and foreign patent prosecution practice. As an active member of the patent bar, he has prepared and prosecuted patent applications in the United States in the chemical, electrical, electrochemical, and mechanical arts, including business methods; cable television equipment; computer circuits (including multiprocessor designs); computer peripherals such as laser printers and user input devices; cosmetic preparations; electronic toys, electrical testing apparatuses, fiber optics, and high-end audio circuitry; kitchen appliances, medical devices, networking devices and methods and personal care devices; semiconductor design and fabrication, paperboard and plastic containers, RF equipment, signal processing software, speech recognition software, and telephony-related inventions.

Mr. Sigale has served as lead litigation and trial counsel in district courts throughout the United States involving a variety of intellectual property issues, including computer intrusion, copyright infringement, false advertising, design and utility patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and trademark infringement. He has also served as lead litigation and trial counsel on many antitrust claims, usually focused on the antitrust-intellectual property interface. His litigation work has involved diverse technologies including cable television systems; chemical compositions (e.g., ceramics, ink, iodine processing, and pharmaceuticals); consumer electronics (e.g., DVD players, small kitchen electrics, personal care devices, and toys); lab equipment (e.g., spectrophotometers); oil field fluid development and management; LED devices; lighting fixtures and power supplies; medical devices (e.g., laser devices, orthopedic devices, and radiological devices); packaging; secured payment technology; software; and telephony (e.g., cellular, cordless, and wired).

“Mr. Sigale is a talented litigator and a strong addition to our team. His prosecution and strategic counselling skills will be an immediate asset to our IP and IP Litigation groups,” said Robert S. Rigg, Chair of Vedder Price’s Intellectual Property and Intellectual Property Litigation groups. “I am delighted that he is joining the team; his skill set will further strengthen our already diverse practice.”

“I am very excited to join the outstanding attorneys at Vedder Price, especially in their Intellectual Property group,” said Mr. Sigale. “It is the perfect platform to build my practice.”

Mr. Sigale earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law, magna cum laude, and earned his B.S. from the University of Illinois College of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

On October 26, 2021, the SEC’s Division of Examinations issued a risk alert identifying observations made during a series of examinations focused on industry practices and regulatory compliance for mutual funds and ETFs that may have an impact on retail investors. The staff’s observations derived from examinations conducted on over 50 fund complexes covering more than 200 funds or series and nearly 100 investment advisers. The staff identified deficiencies or weaknesses in fund compliance programs and the oversight of those programs, fund disclosures to investors and fund governance practices. Based on these observations, the staff identified industry practices that funds may find helpful in their compliance programs.

Fund Compliance Programs. The staff identified the following examples of deficiencies or weaknesses related to the compliance programs of funds and their advisers and the oversight of those programs:

• failure to monitor and provide adequate oversight of portfolio management compliance, including oversight of fund investments;
• failure to provide adequate oversight of the valuation of portfolio securities, including establishing policies, procedures and controls over pricing vendor services;
• failure to provide adequate oversight over trading practices, including trade allocation, prohibited transactions and sharing of soft dollar commissions among clients;
• failure to oversee conflicts of interest between funds and their service providers, including index providers;
• failure to provide adequate oversight of the calculation of fees and expenses;
• failure to establish processes to review advertisements and sales literature;
• failure to establish policies, procedures and processes for monitoring and reporting accurate information to fund boards;
• failure to establish processes governing the board’s annual review and approval of fund advisory agreements under Section 15(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940;
• failure to complete annual reviews of funds’ compliance programs and to assess the adequacy of annual CCO reports; and
• failure to adopt or maintain procedures for fund boards over delegated responsibilities.

Fund Disclosures. The staff identified the following examples of deficiencies or weaknesses related to funds’ disclosure to investors:

• fund disclosures were inaccurate, incomplete or omitted from filings, including disclosures related to changes in investment strategies and potential conflicts of interest; and
  
• fund advertising and sales literature presented key information in a manner that was inaccurate or incomplete or omitted key information altogether.

Staff Recommendations for Compliance Program and Disclosure Practices. In conducting its examinations of funds and their advisers, the staff identified several industry practices that may be helpful in developing an effective compliance oversight program, including the following:

• reviewing compliance policies and procedures for consistency with fund practices;
• conducting periodic testing and reviews for compliance with disclosures and assessing efficacy in addressing conflicts of interest;
• ensuring compliance programs adequately address oversight of third-party vendors, including pricing vendors;
• adopting and implementing policies and procedures that ensure compliance with applicable regulations, align with terms and conditions of applicable exemptive orders and address undisclosed conflicts of interests;
• providing sufficient and accurate information to the board to allow for effective oversight and assessment of fund compliance programs;
• ensuring policies and procedures provide for adequate review, and where applicable, amendment of disclosure in fund reports and communications;
• amending disclosures to reflect actions taken by the funds’ boards and updating funds’ website disclosures concurrently with new or amended disclosures in fund reports and communications;
• reviewing and testing the accuracy and appropriateness of presentations of fund performance and expenses in fund reports and communications; and
• implementing processes that assess whether information provided to the board is accurate, including information related to fees, expenses and performance, and investment strategies and risks associated with those strategies.

The risk alert is available here.

• SEC Issues Risk Alert on Investment Advisers' Fee Calculations
• SEC Issues Risk Alert on Investment Advisers that Provide Electronic Investment Advice
• Division of Examinations Risk Alert Identifies Compliance Issues at Registered Investment Companies
• SEC Adopts Amendments to Filing Fee Disclosure and Payment Methods
• SEC Proposes Amendments to Electronic Filing Requirements and Re-Proposes Certain Amendments to Reports of Institutional Investment Managers
• SEC Staff Issues Update Regarding Withdrawal and Modification of Staff Letters Relating to New Adviser Marketing Rule
• SEC Chair Gary Gensler Provides Statement on Complex Exchange-Traded Products
• Highlights from SEC Speaks 2021

 

Junaid A. Zubairi, Chair of the firm’s Government Investigations and White Collar Defense group, will be a featured speaker at PLI’s Internal Investigations 2021 Conference, offered both in-person and virtually this year, on Wednesday, November 17.

Mr. Zubairi, a former senior attorney with the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, will be participating on a panel entitled Internal Investigations: Regulators Roundtable. Based on his extensive experience as a regulator and in private practice, he will address topics including the regulatory perspective on internal investigations, how companies should navigate whistleblower issues, when and how investigations should be disclosed to regulators, effective cooperation with the government, and more.

During the full day conference program, an expert faculty will review the fundamentals of conducting an effective and efficient investigation using a real-world hypothetical with animated video to bring the story to life. Attendees will leave the program with a better understanding of how to handle investigations successfully for their clients or company.

Michael M. Eidelman, Chair of the firm’s Insolvency, Bankruptcy & Corporate Reorganization group, will be a featured panelist at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Winter Leadership Conference. The conference, which is offered both in-person and virtually this year, features topics designed for consumers and business practitioners, as well as financial advisors.

Mr. Eidelman will be speaking on the panel entitled “Real Estate Restructurings in the Aftermath of COVID-19” on Friday, December 10th. Mr. Eidelman has a wealth experience in real estate restructuring, and led a Vedder Price team that completed one of the most highly acclaimed transactions of 2020, the sale of the L’Ermitage Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles, California. The deal was one of the largest single-asset real estate restructurings of 2020, and won numerous bankruptcy and hospitality industry awards including the 2021 Real Estate Restructuring Deal of the Year Award from The M&A Advisor and the Single Asset Transaction of the Year at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS). Along with his co-panelists, he will offer his perspective on the state of the real estate and real estate-based business economy as we reach the six-month point of the post-COVID-19 recovery period.

We hope that you can join us for the event. Click here for more information, or to register.